Every Tom Holland Spider-Man Solo Movie, Ranked

The Tom Holland Spider-Man movies have quickly become some of the most famous and beloved superhero movies since their big debut with Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2017. Three of them are some of the highest-grossing movies of all time—an accomplishment no other Spider-Man currently has. Not to mention, his inclusion in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was a huge moment for the film industry, with the agreement between Disney/Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures Entertainment being a huge deal—not much like it ever happened before. Holland’s Spider-Man isn’t just well-written and fun to watch, but he’s important, too. This puts him up there in the MCU with characters like Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Chris Evans), easily.

Safe to say, the MCU’s Spider-Man has most certainly changed everything for superhero cinema. Holland gives one of the best performances in the cinematic universe, and his ability to not only be in solo movies but also crossover with the Avengers and other heroes adds a ton of complexity to his adventures and character dynamics. This allows him to bring something to the table unlike any other Spider-Man franchise ever put on screen. They’re all pretty good, but some definitely stand out compared to the rest—especially thanks to the newest entry in the series genuinely breaking records that only one other superhero movie has ever done before.

4

‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ (2019)

peter-parker-watching-his-identity-get-revealed-at-the-end-of-spider-man-far-from-home.jpg — Peter Parker watching his identity get revealed at the end of Spider-Man Far From Home

After the events of Avengers: Endgame, there were tons of questions in the air regarding where certain heroes were going to end up post-Thanos (Josh Brolin) and the number of deaths that occurred. With how close Peter Parker was to Tony Stark, and said hero meeting his end in Avengers: Endgame, the question of how the young man was going to deal with his mentor’s loss was on everyone’s minds. So, when Spidey goes overseas on a school trip and comes across the newest villain in his rogues’ gallery, Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), and another mentor-ish figure in Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), he’s forced to deal with his issues firsthand. Poor Peter just wants to go on vacation and live the good life for a little bit… but when does a Spider-Man variant ever get what he wants?

Unfortunately, Spider-Man: Far From Home finds itself being the least notable of the four Holland solo Spider-Man movies, due to the fact that this didn’t really act as a sequel to the first movie in the franchise, but rather one to Avengers: Endgame. This is a huge misstep on Marvel Studios’ part, taking away most of the special sauce from Jon Watts that made Spider-Man: Homecoming so fun and interesting. It has some great action and features one of the best Spider-Man villains in cinema, but that can’t save it from the sad truth of it really not being much of a sequel to the trilogy it’s supposed to be part of. Regardless, though, it is still a well-made movie, and enjoyable to watch. It also cannot be forgotten that this movie ends by doing something almost no adaptation of the character on screen—movies, television, games—has done before: revealing his secret identity to the world. Ripping Spider-Man’s secret identity away from him was the perfect way to end Spider-Man: Far From Home on a bang, and get people immediately invested in what was to come in the future for the Web-Slinger.

3

‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ (2021)

The three Spider-Men are about to attack in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Spider-Man: No Way Home does not get the attention it deserves for the simple fact that it was a huge contributor to bringing people back to the theater post-pandemic. Not to mention, it’s one of the only multiverse-centered MCU movies that utilizes the multiverse in an effective and non-nostalgia-baiting manner. Every inclusion of a character from past Spider-Man franchises has a genuine place in the story and adds to the plot, so the story can’t happen without them there. It doesn’t just include them for fun or to merely please the audience, no matter how small their roles are—looking at you, Lizard (Rhys Ifans) and Sandman (Thomas Haden Church). This sets it apart from the rest of post-Avengers: Endgame MCU projects, which is definitely for the better, given the general reception people had of the multiverse-based direction of the MCU moving past 2019.

After the massive, groundbreaking events that finished off Spider-Man: Far From Home, Spider-Man: No Way Home picks up exactly where it left off and spends its time dissecting the impact it would have on Peter’s life if his identity was revealed. It shows how much the young man’s life could be truly devastated by a moment like this. It explores consequence and uses its new characters to showcase how, even in the worst circumstances, the hero will always stay who he is—a good man who wants to help people. It emphasizes why Spider-Man is such a special character compared to the rest. It kills Aunt May (Marisa Tomei)—another thing that MCU Spider-Man does that has never been done before—and who can deny how exciting it is to see Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield on screen again?

2

‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ (2017)

Spider-Man in his homemade suit in 'Spider-Man: Homecoming'. — Spider-Man in his homemade suit in ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’.

After his MCU debut in Captain America: Civil War, Spider-Man still had a lot to prove to the audiences in theaters and at home. He may be able to hold his own in someone else’s movie, but can he stand alone with a whole movie of his own on his shoulders? Just one year later, they got the first Holland solo movie, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and it acted as a great introduction to this new franchise of Spider-Man movies. With Peter Parker just being a young hero among dozens of pros and experienced badasses, he now struggles with feeling important in the much larger world he’s just entered. It’s on his journey, though, that he discovers an underlying conspiracy regarding the newest Spidey villain in cinema, The Vulture (Michael Keaton).

Spider-Man: Homecoming was a tad controversial when it released, thanks to the inclusion of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and his mentorship of the Wall-Crawler. Over the years, however—in hindsight—people have noted that the controversy was far more unwarranted than one had thought. Despite the “Iron Boy Jr.” claims, Spider-Man: Homecoming is all about growing out of Stark’s shadow and becoming his own hero. When looking at Peter’s character arc in this project, especially in how he declines to join the Avengers at the end of the movie, the boy’s journey is extremely compelling. It’s an incredible coming-of-age superhero story that keeps the ending of this 2017 adventure feeling like a true full circle, and super satisfying. It was never going to be easy to introduce him to this cinematic universe, let alone establish his new franchise to stand against the other solo franchises within this long catalog of films, but, to this day, Spider-Man: Homecoming is one of the better Spider-Man movies out there.

1

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ (2026)

Tom Holland’s newest Spidey outing—this time directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and not Jon Watts—is, by far, one of the best Spider-Man movies ever made. The proof of such a claim can be found in the pudding that is the critical and box office reception. It’s making box office history in just its first few weeks, being the second-fastest film to ever pass $1 billion at the box office. What’s even more impressive is that Spider-Man: Brand New Day manages to do this without any major marketing ploy like previous movies had—Robert Downey Jr. or the inclusion of villains and heroes from previous Spider-Man franchises—and does so pretty much all on its own. This is further proof that both Holland and Cretton are passionate about this new era of the Web-Slinger, and putting their heart, soul, blood, sweat, and tears into making him an even better character moving forward.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day follows Peter Parker’s life four years after the erasing of his identity at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home. He’s now a far more street-level hero than he’d ever been before, which is a direction that fans of the MCU version of the character have been asking to see for almost a decade now. The fourth Spider-Man entry also finds itself being incredibly important to the grander cinematic universe in a natural way that doesn’t feel forced, bringing in classic X-Men protagonist Jean Grey (Sadie Sink) as the antagonist of the movie. She serves as a great foil to where the young hero is at in his life, struggling to balance both of his lives—having leaned way too far into the Spider-Man side of his life since he erased the Peter Parker identity. The movie also includes the likes of the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Punisher (Jon Bernthal), who both also bring a ton of complexity and excitement to the plot. Safe to say, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is going to be considered unforgettable for quite some time to come—at least until this hero changes the world again in the fifth Spider-Man outing.